In Conversation with Sumes Dewan, Managing Partner, Lex Favios

Mr Dewan, it is an honour to be interviewing you and I’d like to begin by asking you to kindly take us down the memory lane and share with us what inspired you to become a lawyer. Where were the seeds of this illustrious journey sown and how has it been so far?

The legal profession has been my calling from a very early age, I was fascinated by the profession and the great legal luminaries. The legal journey started in the year 1995, as a litigator and then moving on to be a corporate lawyer. During my journey, I have always been exposed to new areas of corporate law practice, some of which are still evolving.  

During my career, I had the opportunity to work on some of the high-profile transactions, which ranged from large mergers, acquisitions, corporate commercial, infrastructure, regulatory practice, non-resident taxation. That deep exposure in the formative years helped shape my career. After working as a Partner with some of the large Indian law firms such as Fox Mandal and Desai & Diwanji, I set up Lex Favios in 2014, wherein I was looking to develop and grow a law firm, which could have the best practices. 

After eighteen years of working with other law firms, I was confident that I had been able to assimilate the strengths and learn from the weakness of law firms, and thus, I took the entrepreneurial route. One of the key reasons for setting up Lex Favios was moving away from family law firms. In India, most of the large law firms are still dominated or controlled by families in which there is very little space for new ideas or a chance to actually bring the art of law firm management of governance.

It is often said that success is easy to achieve and but difficult to sustain. What has helped you build and sustain your success over a prolonged period? Did you face any hurdles in the initial years? How did you power through the problems?

One of the key reasons to build and sustain success is hard work and persistence. I was mentored by Senior Partners of some of the large law firms in the early years of my career. Lex Favios was founded in the year 2014, with the dream to set up an institution which not only provides legal advice to clients and undertakes legal services, but also gets recognized as an exemplary institution in the legal fraternity wherein all members of the firm are stakeholders in the institution and collectively undertake to grow the organization to newer heights. 

One of the key hurdles after working for 18 years with large law firms was to retain clients and provide the confidence that a boutique and start-up law firm can provide the same quality of legal advice. Our team worked very hard to ensure client satisfaction, the persistence and quality advise has been of the reasons for the success of the law firm. 

In a very short span of time, the Firm was enrolled as legal counsel for some of the largest financial institutions such as State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank and PSUs such as Steel Authority of India and Engineering India Limited and represented some of the large corporates, such as Godrej Industries, General Motors India. The Firm is recognized as a notable practitioner in practice areas such as Banking & Finance, Capital Markets and M&A 

Did you face any hurdles in the initial years? How did you power through the problems?

The initial years of the Law Firm especially the first year were the most challenging. On one hand retaining existing clients, pitching to new clients with limited resources was one of the key challenges and whilst on the other hand, retaining talent and hiring a good team of lawyers was quite challenging too. 

Lex Favios has always believed in nurturing talent and with a combination of the fixed and variable component of remuneration has managed to retain quality talent. On the other hand, my personal involvement in matters and assisting clients in providing out of box solutions has gone a long way in ensuring quality advice leading to the growth of the Firm. 

One of the key challenges faced is the competition from larger law firms with both national and statewide law firms engaging in inter-jurisdictional client representation as to the result of mergers and acquisitions of general practice and speciality firms as well as from the increasing development of law firm networks and strategic alliances. Lex Favios through its associate and affiliated firms has a Pan India presence and is also part of Legal Netlink Alliance ( a network of global law firms in the USA and Europe) and exclusive India member of Legal Netlink Alliance.

Who has been your guiding light in your journey and how? Who are the people you have admired and looked up to?

During of course of my professional journey, legendary Senior lawyer late Mr Ram Jethmalani was someone I looked up to. Interactions with him proved very fruitful for me His legal knowledge and legal acumen will remain a huge source of inspiration for me. Further, Mr. Ravi Singhania, Partner, Singhania & Partners and Mr Diljeet Titus, Partner, Titus & Co. have mentored me in the early years of my career.

What in your opinion has been the biggest change or challenge corporate law firms are currently grappling with?

One of the key challenges that corporate law firms are facing, is from the growth of in house counsels, wherein each corporate is growing its in-house legal team and handling day to day legal affairs. Lex Favios has developed niche areas of practice such as capital markets, real estate, Banking & Finance and M&A, wherein corporates reach out to us for transactional advice, handling acquisitions, specialized advise on regulatory issues.  

How do you see legal services contributing to India’s road to economic recovery?

Legal services are providing immense support to the economic recovery. In this environment of uncertainty, we as part of legal fraternity are providing two-way support to the business, firstly by providing clarity to the day to day changes in positions of the evolving laws catering to the pandemic crisis and secondly opening a channel of communication between the corporate and government authorities. This is helping Corporates to see though in the current misty environment created by the pandemic and take business decisions.  

Do you still find time for following any creative pursuits or hobbies? Would you recommend any book/movie or work of art that left a profound impression on your mind?

Legal Counsels find very little time to pursue hobbies. However, reading books is something one of the old habits and sharpens a person intellect and sharpens the brain. Books such as Before Memory Fades, by Fali S Nariman and 5 A.M. Club, by Robin Sharma, are some of the books that have left a lasting impression.

What will be your one message to young and aspiring lawyers looking to build a thriving career in corporate transactional practice? What are the qualities would you like to see in them?

A key message to young lawyers is to be focused and devote more time to legal research and gaining in-depth knowledge of a subject. In today era, clients seek specialist advice, which can only happen with a greater focus on a particular area of practice. The younger generation lays greater emphasis on remuneration as a yardstick for choosing a law firm, than the thrust being on the area of practice, kind of exposure they would be provided and the resolve in invest more in legal skills. Qualities such as hard work, persistence and diligence and not trying to maintain a work-life balance, are some of the key qualities that would take younger lawyers on a path to success.